


Growing up

by amuk



Category: Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types
Genre: Coming of Age, Established Relationship, Family, Father-Daughter Relationship, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Growing Up, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-24
Updated: 2013-01-24
Packaged: 2017-11-26 17:00:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/652471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amuk/pseuds/amuk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Look, Daddy's a real daddy now!" Tamaki and Haruhi learn that sometimes it isn't just the child that has to grow up, it's the parents too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Growing up

**Author's Note:**

> A bit old and extremely embarrassing to reread. I like the father/daughter scenes the best.
> 
> Also, the chronological order in the story isn't running straight--I changed it up a bit. It should be easy enough to follow.

“Stop staring at her,” Haruhi tells him. She is giving him one of her looks, the one that warns him if he doesn’t stop what he’s doing, he is going to regret it. The punishment’s usually ranged from her giving him weird looks or even not talking to him.

 

And that is a horrible thing to experience, because Haruhi is ‘Mom’ and he loves her very much and silence is _evil_.

 

But…

 

“I have to look at her!” Tamaki wails, moving his hands around as he speaks. “She’s…she’s all grown up and wearing such a pretty dress…” He turns to face his daughter. Her gown flows around her legs and she is Cinderella, transforming from little girl to big girl.

 

When did she grow up? It is all too fast and he can’t understand when the change happened or even if there was a change. Just yesterday he was playing with her in the sandbox, she was talking her first steps, and now she is going…

 

He can’t even finish that thought.

 

“Yes, she is all grown up,” Haruhi says, leaning her head against his shoulder. Tamaki freezes for a moment, as he does every time she does something like this, before turning to give her a big hug.

 

She dodges nimbly before continuing, “And that is why you will let her go.”

 

-x-

 

“Daddy.” His six-year-old daughter looks up at him, her blue eyes bright. Her small hand tugs his pants and he bends down to listen to her.

 

“What do you want, my darling, my Hanako –hime?” Tamaki asks, a smile bright on his face.

 

“Well…” There is a shy look on her face and Tamaki immediately hugs her.

 

“You’re so cute!”  He squeezes her even tighter. “I love you!”

 

“I love you too, daddy,” she says quietly, making her even more adorable in his mind. A nervous smile comes on her face and her eyes are hopeful as she asks, “Can we go play outside?”

 

“Well…do you see mommy anywhere?”

 

Looking around carefully, she shakes her head. “Mommy isn’t here.”

 

“Then.” He places a hat on both of their heads and suddenly they are spies. “We must carefully escape the house. She’s not here now, but she might come any moment. And when she comes, she’ll stop daddy from playing with you.”

 

“What?” Hanako’s eyes widen and her lip trembles. “But…I want to play with Daddy! Mommy’s mean!”

 

“Only sometimes.” Tamaki nods his head, agreeing with his daughter. Haruhi won’t let him hug her randomly, dress her up prettily, or even let him cook for her. “She’s still your mommy though and I love her very much.”

 

“Well…I guess I love her too…” Hanako pouts slightly as she reluctantly admits it. “Especially when she takes me out to play. But I love you more, Daddy!”

 

“I love you the most too!” His eyes well up, another smile crosses his face, and he hugs her again. “Now, we need to escape from the house. Ready?”

 

“Yes!”

 

Truth be told, he actually has to go to work this morning and finalize an important contract. Tamaki conveniently forgets that as he plays with his daughter. Whenever she asks, he’ll make time for her.

 

She is more important than any contract.

 

-x-

 

“Daddy, a walk! I want a walk!” Hanako impatiently pushes her daddy to the door. “Mommy stay here.” She yells over her shoulder when Haruhi starts to follow.

 

“A walk? Without Mommy?” Tamaki gasps, turning back to Haruhi who has a surprised look on her face.

 

“She doesn’t want me? She wants Tamaki but not me?” It doesn’t quite click to Haruhi that her daughter prefers Tamaki, with his wild and—oh, wait, that’s probably why she likes Tamaki. He’s the perfect playmate. “Never mind.”

 

“Yes! Lions and tigers!” Hanako informs him and he remembers the last walk they had. They went to the circus, discovering a new performer as they went around ever corner. Of course, it wasn’t any old circus; it was the famous Russian/French circus. (It had changed hands so many times he couldn’t remember who owned it now.) They preformed in a special garden he prepared for them especially.

 

“Oh…so this is now a Daddy-daughter thing!” Tamaki hugs his Hanako close. “I see! Ok, I’ll think of another place to walk to…” Taking out his cell phone, he makes a phone call.

 

“Hanako-hime, do you want to see a panther?”

 

“A pan…pan…pander?”

 

“A panther. It’s a big cat.”

 

“Kitty!”

 

“Then we’re going to the rainforest!” Or rather, the rainforest is going to them.

 

This is the start of the Daddy-daughter walks.

 

-x-

 

“Daddy, I’m going into highschool now!” Hanako stands in front of her father, wearing the uniform he rarely saw Haruhi wear when she went to school. Her brown hair reaches her waist, the ends curly, and she twirls around. “How do I look?”

 

“Beautiful, adorable, amazing…” Adjectives roll off Tamaki’s tongue but none of them can describe what he sees. Instead he just takes pictures, hoping they can capture this moment before it disappears. “You remind me of your mother.”

 

“Really? I’m going to the same school too.” She twirls once more, smiling radiantly at him. “I can’t wait. You had so much fun there, I wonder what I’ll experience.”

 

“Be careful. There might be evil boys who will try to take advantage of you. They might want you to give them gifts all the time or use your popularity or even show off a pretty girlfriend or worse…” He can’t say anything else, thinking about all the bad things that could happen to his daughter. “And there might be girls who are jealous of you…”

 

“Daddy,” she interrupts, laughing, “You’re overreacting again. Nothing’s going to happen to me. I have lots of friends who are going there so I won’t be alone.”

 

“But…”

 

“Tamaki, you’re going to make her late.” Haruhi comes into the foyer. “Wouldn’t that be even worse? Leave her alone already.”

 

“Late? No! You can’t be late on your first day. Do you have everything?”

 

“You’re still overreacting, acting like this every year she starts school. There were no problems last year or the year before that, right? Stop worrying like this.” Haruhi holds his hand, both to calm him and to prevent him from running after his daughter. Her words are sharp and blunt but there is love within them. _He really cares too much sometimes,_ she thinks. “She’ll come back after school, excited and telling you how her day went and you’ll see how foolish you’re acting right now. Now let her get to school, otherwise you might ruin it for her.”

 

Hanako gives her father a small peck on the cheeks and dashes out the doors. Before she leaves, closing the doors behind her as she disappears once more, she turns around and gives him a reassuring smile.

 

“I’ll be fine.”

 

-x-

 

Tamaki loves the early mornings and late evenings. They are the time of day when he and Haruhi are alone, spending time together. Sometimes they talk and sometimes they are silent, but it is always comfortable and he thinks this might be one of the best parts of marriage. It might not be exciting or dramatic but it is more real than any of those moments.

 

Haruhi, even though she won’t say it aloud, also enjoys this time. She can unwind, not having to face her husband’s more…energetic side or her teenage daughter’s dramas. There is no court case for her to research on, it’s just reading for pleasure. That’s something she doesn’t mind doing, reading just for the sake of reading.

 

Another thing she realizes is useful about this time is that it is when Tamaki will tell her his problems. It’s better to face them when he is calm like this than during the day when he’s running around, acting paranoid.

 

“Haruhi…” Tamaki turns to face his wife. “I’m worried about Hanako-hime.”

 

“What do you mean?” Haruhi glances up from her book. When she sees his distraught face, she sighs and puts down the book.

 

“Hanako-hime has been acting strangely all week. She keeps smiling all the time and she doesn’t mind it when I ambush her in the hallways and—” Tamaki stops, clasping her hand with tears in his eyes. “Is she sick?”

 

In response, she carefully holds his hand and pats it. There is no easy way for her to say what she’s going to say, so she allows him to hold onto her for comfort. “Tamaki…this is going to be hard for you to hear.”

 

“What? Is she ill? Are there bullies or kidnappers or—” Haruhi stops him by putting a hand over his mouth.

 

“Where does this come from? Kidnappers? Seriously? Tamaki, Hanako’s in love.”

 

“Oh, she’s just…” It takes a few minutes and Haruhi watches him expectantly.

 

“WHAT?”

 

-x-

 

Hanako’s playing with her first grade schoolmates. It’s a strange game, on he doesn’t get at first. It involves balls and dogs and maybe even a mallet.

 

“Hanako-hime!” Tamaki calls as he approaches the small group of kids.

 

“Yes, Daddy?” Hanako looks back at her daddy, smiling.

 

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Tamaki says the magic words and he waits expectantly.

 

“Well…” she glances back at her friends, torn between playing with them and going on the walk. “I…I…” Thinking carefully, she waves goodbye to her friends. “Let’s do this tomorrow, ok?” Then she turns back to her father.

 

“Let’s go, Daddy!”

 

-x-

 

The best day of Tamaki’s life is when he married Haruhi. That is a definite, no matter what happened he will always remember that day fondly. It is special because he actually managed to make it through the whole ceremony with crying or making Haruhi angry or irritated with him.

 

It is also special because Haruhi became his wife, no longer being his ‘child’. His friends teased him a little about this, especially the twins. “What happens to Kyoya?” They asked him. “Wasn’t he Mommy first?”

 

“I’m sorry, Kyoya! I didn’t mean to replace you with another Mommy…if you want, you can be mommy #1?” Tamaki cried, clutching his friend’s hand.

 

“I don’t want it.” His tone was icy and Tamaki took it as a sign of anger.

 

“Kyoya is made at me! No!” Tamaki ran off, into the distance, a waterfall of tears flowing down his cheeks.

 

When he returned to the wedding, he gave Kyoya an outfit with the word “Mommy” on it.  “This is the best I could do right now…the statue with you in an apron is still being made…”

 

Tamaki still can’t understand why Kyoya got his men to burn the outfit and destroy the statue.

 

“Sir?” Tamaki shakes his head, returning to the present, and then glances at the nurse that comes to him.

 

“Yes?” He can’t forget his hosting methods completely and gives her a bright smile, making her blush.

 

“Well...um…do you want to come in now?” the nurse tells him, flustered.

 

“I can?” Haruhi had forced him to stay outside while she gave birth, telling him that he was a little too excited and would distract her.

 

“Yes.”

 

 “Wait…” He takes out a camera. “Now I am. Can someone tell my friends, when they come back, that I’m in?”

 

“Of-Of course,” she stutters and leads him down the hall. “I’ll tell them myself.”

 

 Following her, he enters a room and sees Haruhi tired and sweaty. She’s still pretty and adorable to him, though she might need to brush her hair a little and wipe the sweat off her face. In her arms is a bundle and she smiles at him.

 

“Here’s our daughter.”

 

He holds the baby gently, fragilely, and as he watches her sleeping face, he thinks this might be the second best day of his life.

 

-x-

 

“Tamaki,” Haruhi says as she holds her daughter in her arms. Rocking the infant slowly, she hums softly as she waits for Tamaki to face her.

 

“Yes?” He continues to take pictures of the room, of the girl, of everything. Jumping around, he starts to take pictures of the area beneath the crib.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

Lowering the camera, he turns to face Haruhi, shocked. “You…you don’t know?”

 

“No, I don’t think anyone would know but you.”

 

“Haruhi, you wound me!” A hand rises to his breast, clutching his heart. “I’m taking pictures for our baby book. And this is an important stage, her crib has gotten bigger and soon she’ll no longer have it!”

 

“Why are you taking pictures of the _crib_? Not the _baby_?”

 

“I need to know the height of the crib, the exact placement! When our daughter grows up, she’s going to want to know this!”

 

“Tamaki…” Haruhi approaches him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You’re going too far. It’s creepy.”

 

“Of course not! In fact, when she’s out grown the crib, I’m going to save it in our basement…ahh…mementos of our daughter growing up…” There is a happy smile on his face as he thinks of his daughter, smiling and staring at the crib, thanking her daddy for saving it.

 

“Not everyone would want their crib. Not everyone is like you.”

 

“Haruhi.” It dawns on him what is happening and a look of understanding spreads across his face. “Did no one save your baby pictures, clothes, and cribs? I’ll fix that.”

 

She sighs, shaking her head. “I don’t need it, so don’t anything. Really. Stop now, before you go too far and—”

 

“It’s not a bother at all!” Tamaki is back in his own world, holding one of her hands and leaning down to her, tears in his eyes. How sad that Haruhi has nothing to remember her childhood in…he has to fix that. Immediately. “I’ll have someone replicate your exact crib! And then I’ll find all sorts of pictures that have you in them.”

 

He glances down at Hanako and silently vows that she won’t grow up without memories of her childhood carefully preserved. She needs them.

 

(Maybe it is he who needs them.)

 

-x-

 

“Hanako-hime, ready for our walk?” Tamaki yells upstairs.

 

“Nearly, Daddy, but remember, this walk has to be a short one! I promised a friend I’d see them in two hours,” she replies as she walks down the stairs.

 

“That’s ok; I got a small walk ready this time anyways. We’re going to see this really special garden in England. I heard it was made with garbage and I was curious to see how the commoners did it.”

 

Hanako got this from her father, this curiosity of the ‘poor’ people. “Really? I can’t wait!”

 

Tamaki tells her to get her coat and shoes on while he makes a call, canceling the trip to see a Spanish acting and dancing troop.

 

-x-

 

Haruhi worries about Tamaki sometimes. She won’t admit—if she ever did, he would never let her forget and that would be annoying. Still, she does worry over him, albeit silently and in a more reserved fashion.

 

When she watches him follow his daughter to school, keeping an eye on her through the window, she grabs his arm and pulls him away.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“My baby…she’s on her first day of school. I need to watch out for her and keep an eye on her and…” There is a look of complete misery when he grips her shoulders and tells her, “She cried when she was leaving us!”

 

“She’s in kindergarten and it’s her first day in a new place. It’s a natural reaction.” She takes his left hand and points at the camera in it. “What are you doing?”

 

“I need to capture her day, it’s special and important!”

 

 _So, that is the real reason he came,_ she thinks. “Yes, it’s an important day,” she concedes. There is a rule she made, when she finally got annoyed by Tamaki’s unnecessary pictures. The rule is that he can’t take pictures or movies unless the event is important or special.

 

She knows he still takes pictures anyways, when she isn’t around.

 

“It’s very, very stalker-like for you to be taking pictures like this. You could get arrested.” Haruhi twitches a little when he continues to take pictures, ignoring her. “Stop it, really! Do you know what could happen if you get caught?”

 

When there is no response, even after she tries to grab the camera, she tries a different tactic. “Why don’t you go home and get the house ready for when she comes back? She’ll want that.”

 

“That’s true…but…” Tamaki hesitates, torn by his desire to watch Hanako and to have a party ready for her instead.

 

Sighing, Haruhi grips his shirt and tells him, pointedly, “You have work. I have work. We need to go.”

 

As she drags him after her, ignoring his protests and how he calls someone, telling them to continue taping, Haruhi worries.

 

He won’t be able to let his daughter leave the nest. And what worries her most is how he will react when she does leave anyways.

 

-x-

 

“I’m making a castle,” Tamaki informs Hanako seriously as he starts building with the sand. “There will be windows and it will be big.”

 

“Daddy…” The girl stares at him and he’s reminded of Haruhi again. Except, this is the look Haruhi gives him, not Hanako.

 

“What is it, Hanako-hime?”

 

“Is it ok if you make the castle yourself?” She watches as he drops the shovel and stares at her in shock.

 

  
“But…this is a daddy-daughter thing! We always make castles as the beach!” Tamaki splutters, not sure why this is happening to him.

 

“Yes, but maybe next time, instead of today? I don’t want to make it today.”

 

“What?” Tamaki curls up, depressed. “She doesn’t love me any more, does she?” Haruhi glances at him from her book.

 

“Drama-queen,” she mutters. “She loves you.”

 

“Really?” Temporarily, his face brightens but then he realizes what will happen. “She doesn’t want to do our castle any more…”

 

“Daddy!” Hanako shakes him. “I’m sorry, but I just want to go play with my friends in the water…is that ok? I promise to make the castle with you next time!”

 

“But,” he pauses when she looks at him nervously again. He can’t resist that look and the battle is over. “Fine, you can go.”

 

Hanako is hesitant, not sure that he means it and he pushes her. “You’re friends are waiting and you’re not supposed to keep them waiting! Now go!”

 

“Thank you, Daddy!” With that, she disappears into the maze of umbrellas and people.

 

“You did the right thing, ‘Daddy’,” Haruhi tells him and gives him a peck on the check. He gives her a weak smile before going back to the sand castle.

 

Something hurts at the sight of his daughter disappearing like that and he doesn’t like it.

 

-x-

 

“This is fun, right?” Tamaki asks his daughter as they walk out the house together. “We’re going to have so much fun…”

 

“Yes,” Hanako gives him a nervous smile, unsure of what her father prepared.

 

“Since we haven’t walked in months—”

 

“Daddy, I walked with you last week.”

 

“Hanako-hime, as much as it pains me to say this, you are wrong. Last time you walked with me was three months ago.”

 

“What? No I’m sure I walked with you last Friday.”

 

“I was with Haruhi, at a ball. I danced with her, charming her once again, showing my impressive skills at being a dancer and—”

 

“Oh, right…I forgot. But three months? Really?”

 

“Yes, so because of that long gap, this walk will be special because I have several surprises this time. Not just one like usual!”

 

There is a beeping sound and Hanako digs into her pocket to get her cell phone. “One moment, Daddy.” She places it on her ear. “Hmm…what? Really?....now…oh…well,  now’s a bad time….really? I can’t miss that…yeah, that’s true…fine, I’ll be over soon.” Glancing up, she gives her father a sheepish grin. “Uh, Daddy?”

 

“Yes, Hanako-hime?” He already knows he won’t like it.

 

“Can I go meet my friends right now? It’s important, and I promise to go with you on a walk soon! Really!”

 

“Of course you can, Hanako-hime. I don’t mind waiting,” Tamaki tells her. He can’t tell if he’s lying to her or himself now.

 

-x-

 

_I’ll be fine._

 

Hanako’s voice echo’s in his head as Tamaki waits outside the school’s gates. She might think she’ll be fine, but how can he really know, unless he checks himself?

 

Sure, Haruhi would be mind if she caught him, but he’s doing what every daddy would do anyways.

 

“Are we going to sneak in?” Hunny cheerfully asks as he and Mori arrive.

 

“Like spies, we’ll go in without anyone noticing us and watch her carefully,” Tamaki replies. He called all the old host club members to help him with his plan.

 

“And how do you propose to do that, my lord?” the twins asked at the same time, a force of habit from times long gone.

 

Tamaki wonders if this is what ‘longing’ felt like. He missed this, the games they would play, the adventures they would have.

 

“Look, he’s crying again,” Hikaru says.

 

“Is he feeling nostalgia?” Kaoru asks, smirking at his mirror image.

 

“Tamaki is missing us!” Hunny happily jumps around them while Mori stands there, silently watching them.

 

It’s a pantomime, really, with the actors slipping into rarely used old skins. They are no longer separated by time, distance, and their lives, no longer different people, strangers to each other.

 

Instead, for the moment, they are the host club again.

 

Kyoya, oddly enough, is also there and is watching silently as Tamaki attempts to climb over the fence, only to fall on his back. “We could always get a ladder, you know.”

 

“But that makes it too easy and…” Tamaki’s voice trails off as he sees Mori following Hunny up the ladder. Pouting, he follows them in.

 

When, after getting lost and creating chaos in the school, they finally find Hanako’s classroom, Tamaki is a little shocked.

 

He had been prepared for bully’s, sorrow, and maybe even some sort of guy looking at her from below.

 

What he didn’t expect is to see her laughing as she packs her bag, chasing her friends down the hallway. When she is crying, it’s because her friends are tickling her.

 

She really is all right, no longer needing to hide behind her daddy’s legs or tell him what happened. Hanako doesn’t need him any more, to watch her every move and make sure she doesn’t fall.

 

“My lord,” Kaoru says, breaking his reverie, “It’s best we leave.”

 

“And leave quickly and sneakily,” Hikaru adds.

 

“Why?” Tamaki turns to face the twins.

 

“Your wife just called us, asking if we’ve been stalking her daughter,” Kaoru continues.

 

“And we told her that we were just following your orders,” Hikaru ends.

 

“Haru-chan is mad!” Hunny beams up at Tamaki. “I wonder if I can see her…”

 

Tamaki  twitches slightly when he realizes what will happen when Haruhi arrives.

 

-x-

 

Tamaki ambushes his daughter as she’s about to leave. “Hanako-hime…want to go on a walk?”

 

Hanako jumps back as he jumps down from the roof. “Daddy, you scared me!”

 

“Really? I’m sorry, Hanako-hime, I didn’t mean to do that!” There is a smile on his face anyways and he repeats his request. “Do you want to have a walk with me?”

 

She gives him a sheepish look. “I’m sorry, Daddy, I’m meeting my friends in ten minutes.” Seeing his downcast face, she adds, “Maybe next time, then?”

 

Hanako doesn’t notice that he doesn’t bounce back happily, grinning like always.

 

-x-

 

“WHAT?” Tamaki yells, not comprehending. “She’s…she’s…”

 

“Yes, she’s in love,” Haruhi states.

 

“Who is this evil man? Who dares to try and take—” Tamaki rants, getting off the bed before she gives him a tug and stops him.

 

“If anything, you’re the evil one.” Haruhi tells him. “Besides, he isn’t her first crush, nor will he be her last.”

 

“You mean…Hanako-hime has been in love before? This is not possible! Why wouldn’t she tell me?”

 

“Tamaki…she didn’t tell you because I told her how you would act and we decided this was better,” Haruhi explains to him, nothing kind in her voice but her hand holds his comfortingly.

 

“You didn’t trust me?” Tamaki clutches his chest, wounded. “I thought you could tell me anything.”

 

“Not really. When you act like this, not really.”

 

“I…I….I need to call Kyoya, tell him to get a background check on him…” Tamaki isn’t sure of what to do, this is all to sudden, Hanako is too young to fall in love.

 

“I’ve met him, he’s a good man, seventeen, only a year older than her. Stop worrying.” Haruhi sighs and stares at him. “She’s had other crushes and when she’s cried over them before. Remember those times when she was depressed? But she’s also always gotten over them and moved on, like she has now. This boy won’t be the last one and he won’t take Hanako away from you. She’s still your little girl.”

 

Haruhi’s words reassure him but he can’t stop the small doubts that grow in him.

 

-x-

 

 

When Hanako was a little girl, Tamaki used to take her on walks all the time. He used to go on adventures with her, visiting the jungle or the circus.

 

Of course, most of the time they actually did visit the circus or the jungle, with real animals and plants. So it wasn’t quite as imaginative as Tamaki originally planned.

 

As Hanako grew older, she went on fewer and fewer walks with, instead preferring to spend time with her friends. It wasn’t that bad, she still went sometimes, but more often she would say, “Daddy, can I go with my friends this time?” or “Please stop doing this, I don’t like our adventures as much, they’re embarrassing.”

 

Finally, it reached the point when he would ask and she would say, “Maybe next time.”

 

There never was a next time.

 

As Tamaki looks at his album, watches his tapes, holds her old teddy bear, he wonders where that smiling little girl went. He can’t seem to find her any more, that little girl that would say, “Come with me, Daddy” and “Daddy, I love you most, even more than Mommy.” The dancing, singing, adorable little Hanako now exists only in his memories and his mementos. He looks at his most recent picture of her, her in a gown getting ready to go to her last high school Halloween ball. She still looks the same but she looks irritated at having her picture taken.

 

When he looks back it now, he can’t see what he did wrong. Maybe he should have gotten her to go on more walks; maybe he should have taken her on less. It’s hard to decide now, when it is too late and his daughter is leaving him.

 

“Where did my little Hanako-hime go?” he whispers to himself, softly.

 

-x-

 

“You will let her go,” Haruhi tells him.

 

“I…I…I…” Tamaki’s voice escapes him and his daughter gives him a brilliant smile.

 

“How do I look, Daddy?” she asks him, twirling around for him like she used to.

 

“Beautiful, adorable, amazing, stunning,” he responds, echoing words from the past. He has a camera in his hand still, but his fingers are limp and he can’t move them at first. Haruhi takes his pointer finger and pushes it on the button, taking a picture, and suddenly he can move again.

 

“Daddy,” she giggles after a few minutes, “That’s enough photos. I’m going to be late.”

 

"Nonsense," he tells her, leaning close and giving her a butterfly kiss on the forehead. “You can never be late. When you arrive, the whole thing can start.”

 

Haruhi squeezes his arm, realizing how hard this was for him to say. “I’ll go on ahead,” she tells them, giving them some alone time.

 

It will be on of his last Daddy-daughter moments, he realizes.

 

“I’m nervous,” Hanako confides to him, whispering, and they are no longer two adults in a room, but a little girl whispering to her father.

 

“So am I,” he whispers back, continuing the game.

 

“I…I’m scared. I’m not sure if I’m ready. I mean, I think I am but…am I really?” She looks at him, hopefully, as though he has all the answers.

 

He doesn’t. Not for every question, at least. However, for this question, he does have the solution.

 

It would be very easy to tell her, “You aren’t ready, so you can stay here. Just be my little girl for the rest of your life.” If Tamaki says that, she would probably agree and then there would be no problem any more.

 

He’s better than that, though, and tells her, “I wasn’t either, but look how we ended up?”

 

There is still doubt in his daughter’s steps as she follows him and he offers a hand to her.

 

“Want to go on a walk?”

 

-x-

 

“Where did my little Hanako-hime go?” Tamaki whispers to himself, softly. Then he hears the quiet footfalls and a warm body pressing close.

 

“I’m still here,” Hanako tells him, hugging him from behind. “I didn’t leave you at all.”

 

Tamaki can’t bring himself to believe that.

 

“I…I’m sorry about not going on walks with you any more or for yelling at you sometimes. I didn’t realize I was hurting you so badly…” Hanako continues, giving him an apologetic smile.

 

“It’s…It’s ok. Mommy told me that I was being overprotective, and I was going to have a hard time accepting that you will change, but…” Tamaki cries, hugging Hanako close. It feels wrong to have her apologize to him. “You’ve changed!”

 

Hanako raises an eyebrow at what her mother said. She was the one who sent Hanako here in the first place, telling her what was wrong. Ignoring that comment, she answers, “I suppose I have, Daddy. Everyone changes, after all. You’re not the old you any more, right? I changed as well, becoming a new me. That just means I’m your big Hanako-hime now.”

 

Hanako isn’t sure if she’s using the right words to comfort her father. She never had to do it before, but when she thinks about it, there were many times when he probably needed it. Whenever she rejected his invitations, she always expected him to get over it like he usually does.

 

She forgot that there is always a breaking point.

 

When she sees her father’s face look just a little lighter, a little less gloomy, she adds the final words that would help fix everything. “Want to make breakfast together? I found a new commoner’s food that sounds fun to try…”

 

It won’t fix everything but it’s a start.

 

-x-

 

“Want to go on a walk?” Tamaki asks Hanako, hand outstretched.

 

She places her hand on his and he leads her out the door, to her wedding.

 

He thinks he can survive this because in the end, she is still his daughter and he is still her father.

 

“Thank you for this walk,” she tells him as they take the long route to the ceremony.

 

And they will always have their Daddy-daughter moments.


End file.
